


I'm Thinking Two is Better

by ticklishblaine (lightsandsparks)



Category: Glee RPF
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-31
Updated: 2014-12-31
Packaged: 2018-03-04 14:18:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,432
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3071273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lightsandsparks/pseuds/ticklishblaine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU in which soulmates are rare, but can be discovered when two people touch hands. Darren is a lonely New York newcomer who’s recently been cast in his first off-Broadway show. Chris is his equally as lonely producer.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I'm Thinking Two is Better

Darren liked people. That much had been certain ever since the day he was old enough to talk. He liked being around them, loved socializing, hated being alone. It was just who he was: an extrovert who was lucky enough to constantly find himself surrounded by people he loved and respected. All things considered, it shouldn’t have came as a surprise that when he suddenly found himself as a young adult, 10,000 miles away from those people... it was hard, to say the least.

Being an actor with a job was something that Darren was incredibly thankful for and more than what he could have hoped for when he graduated college. He had been fully prepared to work a part-time retail job while frantically attending every audition he possibly could in between shifts, hopefully picking up roles as an extra here and a stand-in there. However, Michigan was a big school, and thanks to his social butterfly-like tendencies and ability to talk to practically anyone, the connections he’d fostered throughout his four years had led him to booking an audition for an off-Broadway show in Manhattan and, by some miracle, landing the role mere months after graduation. 

Of course, living in San Francisco and possibly making a name for himself in NYC were not conducive to beginning a career in acting, so after some deliberation he finally decided to make the move across the country.

As grateful as Darren was for a semi-steady job (which was more than a lot of actors could say for themselves), he couldn’t deny the feeling of homesickness he felt for his family just a few weeks into rehearsals. It had been easy when he was in college; constantly being surrounded by close friends was like having a second family in itself. Between them, extra-curriculars, and (sometimes) schoolwork, it was easy enough to distract himself from the fact that he didn’t get to see his family for months at a time. But even then, he got to fly back during breaks which tended to come frequently when one was in college, and he basically didn’t have the time to miss them, all things considered.

But it’s true what they say about New York City. It’s huge, and it gets lonely; especially since he knew next to no one outside of the team of actors, producers and musicians that he worked with daily. Luckily, there were a lot of them, and they were all amazing people that kept Darren’s innate need for companionship and intimacy satisfied, at least for the most part.

“Hey, Dare?”

Darren looked up from where he was moping in the green room, purposely procrastinating on leaving the building after a long day of rehearsals by idly checking emails on his phone. At least there were people here, unlike his empty apartment across town. His spirits lifted significantly, however, when he saw Chris’s head peak in through the cracked door.

Chris was probably Darren’s closest friend in his group of coworkers, if not his closest friend in New York, period. He was several years younger than Darren, but the kid already had it made. Chris had moved out to NYC just a year after high school but had been able to find someone willing to pick up one of his scripts almost immediately. Cut to a few years later and he already had quite a resume, his name credited as assistance producer, writer and director of several off Broadway shows, including the one they were currently working on together. It turns out they both had a lot in common, and their friendship blossomed from there.

“Hey man!” Darren answered maybe a little too enthusiastically, dropping his phone and sitting up on the couch. “Whats up?”

“Nothing, I just came to grab my stuff. What are you still doing here?” 

Darren shrank back, slightly self-conscious. The cast had been dismissed from rehearsals over an hour ago, but still Darren was lingering around, comforted by the noise and sounds surrounding him. It made him anxious to even think about going home to the silent stillness of his apartment, especially when he’d barely had a personal conversation with anyone in days.

“Just... hanging out”, he covered lamely, unable to come up with a good excuse.

Chris eyed Darren suspiciously before sitting next to him on the couch. “Are you sure you’re okay? You’ve seemed a bit down lately.”

Darren quickly looked away, embarrassed by the wave of emotion and burning behind his eyes that the simple statement caused. It was true, he wasn’t feeling himself, and hadn’t been for the past week or so. He hadn’t, however, considered that anyone had noticed; was convinced that he’d been able to hide his low spirits behind the huge grin he’d been forcing himself to wear each day. The bubbly giddiness he’d felt months ago when he first moved to New York had long since worn off, but Darren tended to spend most of his life with that same sense of cheerfulness anyway. The mood he’d been in lately was extremely rare and very uncommon for someone who, as his friends had always described, was “perpetually in a good mood.”

The fact that Chris had noticed though... well, it was important to him.

“I have been,” Darren found himself spitting out, surprised by his words. Darren and Chris were friends, but the nature of their relationship was casual, and often very much work-related. They’d never hung out outside of the walls the theater, and they never really talked about personal things besides the basic run-down of the dynamics in their family and friends. Their conversations that weren’t directly related to the show were usually limited to nerd culture, ranging from in depth discussions on the homoerotic subtext in The Legend of Korra to the differences between Marvel movie adaptations and their comic book counterparts. To open up to Chris like that was strange, especially because technically Chris was one of his bosses. Somehow though, it still felt right. Safe, almost. “I just haven’t been feeling myself lately, I guess.”

“Are you okay?” Chris asked, worry immediately clear on his face.

“Yeah,” Darren quickly answered, feeling bad for implying that his situation was worse than it actually was. “I’m fine, really. I’m just...” he trailed off, not knowing how to continue. “I’m fine.”

Chris eyed Darren, looking at him in a way that made Darren feel like his soul was being read. Somehow, Chris knew there was more to the story. He didn’t press, however, which Darren was thankful for, and instead smiled a little before standing up. “Come on, we’re going back to my place and ordering Thai and drinking wine and watching as many movies that we can’t convince anyone else to watch with us as we can. No objections,” he stated matter-of-factly before getting up, grabbing his coat and heading toward the door.

Darren followed automatically.

\--

The walk back to Chris’ apartment was surprisingly short. He lived just seven blocks away from the theater in a swanky part of town that Darren couldn’t help but be envious of when he thought back to his shoebox apartment in Brooklyn. The inside was even nicer, a modern-style home with studio lights, art that you’d probably have to stare at for a while to make sense of, and an entire wall that was a series of giant windows, providing a beautiful view of the city.

That’s where Chris and Darren found themselves hours after arriving, sitting side by side on the comfortable couch in front of the windows, where Chris divulged he got most of his writing done. Full of Thai and with slight headaches from watching one too many movies, they cuddled up closer than expected, watching the city, each finishing up their second glass of wine.

“I really do love it here,” Darren declared, gesturing to their few. “It’s awesome. Fucking look at it. There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”

“But?” Chris prompted, knowing there was more to what Darren was trying to say.

“But... I wish it wasn’t so far away from everything, I guess. My whole family lives in California and all of my friends from college are scattered around the country, but somehow not a single one decided it would be a good idea to come to New York. They’re theater nerds, Chris. What the fuck?”

Chris giggled, swirling his wine before taking a sip. “That’s because they knew you’d be here.”

Darren laughed out loud at that and Chris smiled, glad that Darren got his sense of humor. Not a lot of people did, and most probably would have taken that the wrong way.

“You’re great, Chris. I’m so glad I met you. I’d probably be insane by now if I hadn’t.”

Chris smirked, and Darren laughed in earnest before adding, “Don’t say it, I know I already am.”

They both giggled, cuddling up closer than they already were. Darren hoped he wasn’t being too forward; he’d been flirting all night. But Chris was flirting back, so that had to mean something, right? He really liked Chris and just hoped the feeling was mutual.

“Hey Dare?”

“Yeah?”

“What’s been up with you, recently? You said you haven't been feeling yourself, and you haven't been acting it, either. Usually you’re bouncing off the walls at rehearsal and I haven’t had to remind you to focus even once this week. Are you sure you’re okay?” 

Darren wasn’t expecting that, but at the same time he was glad for it. He hadn’t been able to talk about this with anyone, trying to keep up the appearance to his family and friends that he was having the time of his life. And he was, really. But he didn’t want to let on that anything was even slightly wrong to anyone, and found himself vehemently avoiding mentioning his acutely morose mood every time he talked to his mom on the phone.

“I’m just a little... sad, I guess is the word for it. I’m usually not a sad person. I’m a happy person. Like, annoyingly happy, you know that. But I guess I’m... homesick?” Darren paused, sighing. “I miss my mom. And my dad, and my brother. My friends from school. I like being surrounded by people and it’s what I’m used to, but ever since I moved out here... It’s just different, I guess.” Darren knew he was rambling and was pretty sure he wasn’t making sense either, but he didn’t care. Somehow he knew Chris understood.

Chris nodded, affirming that he did. “I know how you feel. It’s weird how you can be surrounded by people but still feel all alone at the same time. I’m grateful for everything I’ve accomplished here, obviously. It’s more than I ever could have asked for. But still, it sucks to feel isolated like that. I do all the time.”

Darren rose an eyebrow. “Really? I didn’t think that’d a problem for someone like you. You’re so successful.”

Chris shook his head. “Success in your career doesn’t buy you happiness. Sure, it’s great. But I haven’t been close with anyone since I left California, and even there the closest relationship I had was with my sister. I haven’t felt like I’ve been able to relate to anyone since I’ve moved out here.”

“Do you relate to me?” Darren asked in a small voice, looking up shyly.

“I do.” Chris answered, smiling in that gorgeous way that made his eyes crinkle. Darren grinned back, wanting nothing more in that moment than to kiss Chris. But he didn’t, couldn’t, not yet. So he settled for laying his free hand on top of Chris’, hoping to convey what he felt.

Something happened in that moment that Darren knew he would never be able to describe to anyone. The moment the skin of his hand made contact with Chris’, it felt like the world around him became insignificant. All he could see was Chris, like he was a light in an otherwise dark room. He almost felt a magnetic pull connecting him to where they were touching, and everything in him suddenly felt right. Whole.

Darren would have pulled back in surprise, but he found he couldn’t, didn’t want to. He tried to speak but didn’t know what to say. He searched for words for several moments before finally settling on “Holy shit, did you feel that?” Prophetic words indeed.

Luckily, Chris seemed to have felt that whatever-it-was, too. “Y-yeah. Darren? Do you think...?”

Darren knew what Chris was implying. He’d heard of soulmates before; in stories and movies and in life, all throughout history. They were rare; only about 5% of the population had a soulmate, according to studies. Darren had never considered he had one, but in that moment he was sure. He had a soulmate, and that person was sitting right in front of him.

They both looked down at their hands, still touching, before moving them to get a good look. Sure enough, there was a small red heart on the tip of one of Darren’s fingers where he’d first touched Chris and, looking over, he saw that Chris had one on the top of his hand as well.

“We’re... soulmates?” Chris sputtered, tears glittering in his eyes.

“Y-yeah, it looks like it. Oh my god.”

Neither of them knew what to say, so they didn’t say anything; they immediately latched on to one other, holding tight. Darren finally knew what all of those cheesy soulmate songs meant when they talked about feeling complete, like they’d been looking for something their entire life and now, finally, it was found. It was the weirdest feeling and the best feeling all at the same time, and he’d never felt happier in his entire life.

When they pulled away, Chris was full on crying, but smiling his best smile at the same time, the one that showed his teeth. Darren loved that one.  
He reached up to wipe a few tears away from Chris cheek, and then to wipe a few away from his, as well. “Aw, don’t cry man. It won’t be that bad. I’m only about half as annoying as I seem.”

Chris giggled again, looking down and shaking his head. “You’re an idiot. But I’d expect nothing less from my soulmate. We can be idiots together.”

“Sounds perfect.”

As if to seal the deal, they kissed, and it really was perfect. They had found each other. Somehow, the loneliness and isolation of New York had brought them together, but it had been worth it. They’d never have to feel that way again.


End file.
